


colour and song

by blamethenargless



Series: Catradora Week 2018 [4]
Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Colors, F/F, Fluff, Friendship, Soulmates, adora is shockingly bold, catra is gay and pretty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-02
Updated: 2019-01-02
Packaged: 2019-10-03 06:39:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17278964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blamethenargless/pseuds/blamethenargless
Summary: In slinks a girl with shoulder-length curly hair, and the world blooms.orAdora lives in a world where one can only see the colours that match their soulmates eyes; otherwise, the world is in black and white. Adora can see two colours: yellow and blue.





	colour and song

**Author's Note:**

> Hey all! This is my submission for Catradora Week day 4. I chose the prompt soulmates. As always, everything belongs to the creators. Enjoy!

For her first day of her sophomore year of college, Adora dons a pale blue top, black pants, and yellow sneakers. It’s not like she has much choice in variety—she can only see blues and yellows. The rest of the world is in black and white.

She supposes she’s lucky to be able to see two colours. Having two soulmates—in her case, one with blue eyes, and one with yellow—is relatively uncommon, but not unheard of, especially two platonic soulmates. Still, it makes it all the much more difficult to find  _ both  _ of them. Only then will she be able to see the rest of the colour spectrum.

It’s not like that’s a necessity to get by in life. Most people end up without their soulmates, but it doesn’t mean they have a less fulfilling time on the world. The contrary is true, in fact—people who fixate on finding their soulmate usually don’t, and end up living a life of fruitless journey and tiring search. It drives people mad. Adora’s just happy to be able to see in colour at  _ all _ , let alone two colours. Someone whose soulmate isn’t yet born, or worse, whose soulmate has died, sees only in black and white. 

Plus, blue and yellow are great colours to have. She can watch the ocean, the way the waves crash and pull against stormy gray rocks on the shore. She can stargaze, get lost in the twinkling yellow lights that dot a blue-black sky. She can see bits and pieces of sunrise and sunset, the yellow rays cutting across the darkening blue sky. It could be a lot worse.

She’s just hopefully that her pants are  _ actually _ black, and not some other colour she can’t see. If they ended up being purple or something, Glimmer and Bow would never let her hear the end of that fashion mishap.

Glimmer and Bow—her two best friends, and platonic soulmates. They’ve known each other for  _ forever _ , which is kind of amazing, Adora thinks. Growing up with the world in full colour is something she would trade the world for. There was no worry of any awkward romantic feelings, also, because Glimmer only likes girls. So they have a pretty set life.

It’s something Adora can’t help but wish for. Sure, her two colours are nice, and it’s easier to have them than someone with a brown-eyed soulmate, who has almost no chance of finding their other half. Blue is rarer, and yellow is almost unheard of, so it’s not like finding her soulmate is way beyond the realm of possibility. Still. Knowing that you have someone who will always have your back, who will be your friend and stick by you no matter what, who’s basically  _ destined  _ to love you—that’s a security Adora might never have. And that terrifies her.

What terrifies her the most right now, though, is that she may be late for her first class of the year. She rushes down the hall, gray backpack slung over one shoulder. As she runs through the corridor, pops of colour catch her eye. A blue door here, a yellow bulletin board there. She passes one or two blue-eyed students as she nears the classroom, but of course, her vision wouldn’t be complete until she found her yellow-eyed soulmate as well.

She bursts through the door a minute early. No one notices, though. It’s a huge lecture hall, filled with probably two hundred people, and only a few glance her way as she climbs across rows to where Glimmer and Bow are waving at her. They always wear blue-and-yellow braided ribbons, and she has a matching third. It’s so that they can always find each other in a crowd.

Sure, it stings to be the platonic third-wheel. But Adora knows she could never be what Glimmer is to Bow and what Bow is to Glimmer. At the same time, though, they could never be what she is to them. She has a different role in their friendship, but she’s alright with that. Besides, ever the optimist, it means Adora still holds out hope for the possibility of her soulmate being a romantic one.

As she makes her way to Bow and Glimmer, she loses herself in her fantasies again. One day, one day soon, she’ll be sitting in some cafe. Or maybe a classroom, just like this. Maybe she’ll be walking down the street, and maybe she’ll be entering the elevator. Whatever the circumstance is, she’ll feel some sort of tugging on her heartstrings. This persistent pull. She’ll lift her head, chest almost hurting with the anticipation flooding her lungs. And—there, across the room, or across the table, or standing next to her, will be two girls. One with blue eyes, and one with yellow. Maybe they’ll already know each other; maybe they’re meeting for the first time, too. Whatever the situation, they’ll find each other, and rush at each other in some embrace. Maybe one of them is her future lover, and another her future best friend. Maybe both. Who knows. Some day, though, it’ll happen. Adora can’t explain how she knows, but she can  _ feel  _ it. Some day, some day soon, she’ll find the girl perfect for her.

“Head in the clouds?” Glimmer greets. “You’re almost late.”

“Yeah, I know. I couldn’t decide what I wanted to wear.”

“So you decided on…that?” Glimmer raises an eyebrow, and Bow hides behind a laugh.

“Yes? It’s just blue and black and yellow, right?”

“It’s blue and orange and yellow, Adora. And…it does make a statement!” Bow smiles, as if that will help with her embarrassment.

Adora groans, and Glimmer rubs comforting circles on her back. “It’s okay. Just let us help you with your wardrobe soon, alright? We gotta get you some clothes that are  _ actually  _ black and white.”

The door swings open again, and in walks the teacher. She’s either new, or none of the trio has had her before, because they all whisper questions of  _ who’s that  _ to each other. None of them have an answer.

“Welcome, class,” the teacher begins. “I’m Professor Hope. Yes, that is my last name. Don’t worry. We still have to retain some semblance of formality here, don’t we?” A few titters echo across the crowd, likely from the sycophantic types. Adora’s never really been one of those. She’s usually naturally liked enough by the teachers without trying. Bow, too. Glimmer’s a different story, but her grades typically make up for the chaos she likes to cause in her smaller classes. 

“And I’d also like to introduce you to this class’s junior T.A., Catra. Won’t you come introduce yourself?”

In slinks a girl with shoulder-length curly hair, and the world blooms.

Her hair is brown.  _ Brown _ . That’s the first thing Adora notices. Next, she sees her clothes. They’re a sort of burnt red, and it’s beautiful beyond words. They fit her well, and she has a slender form that’s still defined well by the muscles in her arms. And her red clothes—red clothes—are hugging those arms. Her skin’s a tanned shade, and this is incredible. Adora has never seen skin colour before. It’s amazing in ways she could never imagine. This girl, Catra, is not just one flat colour. The brown of her skin dips and peaks, with variation running across even small patches of her skin. Her face, for instance, is lighter than her arms, if only a little. Underneath her cheeks, Adora can see vibrant pinks, and on top of them, she sees a light dusting of deep orange freckles.

It’s beautiful.  _ She’s  _ beautiful. She’s the most beautiful thing Adora has ever seen.

And then she meets Catra’s gaze. One eye is blue. One is yellow. And everything makes sense.

Catra, for her part, seems floored as well. She stumbles as soon as she sees Adora, and her eyes go wide with wonder as she takes in all the colour the world has to offer. It’s incredible. Adora has no idea what’s going through Catra’s head at the moment, but if it’s anything like what’s going through her own, it’s something like  _ so this is what I have been missing out on for nineteen years. _

“Glimmer,” Adora says, “you never told me it would be so…” She trails off. She has no words to describe what she’s seeing, no words to describe the joy sweeping through her body and filling her up so high she thinks she might burst if she sees another colour.

Glimmer starts. “You—what? You can see?”

Adora nods. “Yeah. Yeah, I can see.”

The rest of the class passes by in a blur. Adora doesn’t hear a single world Professor Hope says, and she doesn’t answer a single question Bow bombards her with when the teacher isn’t looking. Instead, she gazes around the classroom, drinking in every shade and variation as if it all might go away when she opens her eyes from some crazy fever dream.

It’s more beautiful than she ever could have imagined. It’s incredible. The desks are a warm mahogany brown, and she brushes her fingers over their laquered surface a million and two times, each touch revealing more and more depth to their colour than she could think. The floor is tiled in a minty green that seems to spin underfoot with each passing second. A girl near her is wearing bloodred lipstick, and when she opens her mouth to speak, Adora is transfixed by the way the light catches against its glossy finish.

And, yes, Adora’s wearing orange pants. They look terrible, especially against her blue shirt. But there’s a strange sort of beauty in their offensive clashing. Not only can Adora see beauty, she can see the ugly, cruel colours of the world as well. She can literally see the spectrum of beauty and of terror that ranges across the world, across her life. 

The thing that shocks her most, though, is Glimmer’s hair. It’s a dusty lavender, with little sparkles of pink that glint when she turns her head. It’s absolutely fascinating. And it fits Glimmer’s personality perfectly. She’d always assumed Glimmer had light brown hair, because in black and white, it was a faded grey. This, though, is so vibrant and eye-catching and so  _ very  _ Glimmer. She can see the dark brown roots fading into the purple, a sort of wave of change that sweeps over the crown of Glimmer’s head. 

She doesn’t look back at Catra throughout the class. She’s worried that, if she does, she might find something she wouldn’t like. Which she knows is ridiculous. But still. This girl is the love of her life, apparently. Perfectly compatable. It’s more than a little daunting.

After class, she lets Glimmer and Bow go on ahead of her, promising she’ll answer their questions later. She stays behind to look around the room, to drink in the real world. When she feels satiated for the time being, she heads for the door.

Only for Catra to stop her in her tracks.

“Hi,” Adora says, and holds out her hand awkwardly. “I’m Adora?” It’s not a question, but Adora makes it one anyway.

Catra shakes her hand. “Catra,” she replies, and Adora’s damned if she hasn’t seen a more perfect shade of yellow or blue than the eyes flashing at her. “I think you’re the one who’s destined to be with me.”

Adora takes Catra’s face in her hands and kisses her, long and deep. 

The world has burst into colour, and Adora’s heart has burst into song.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Kudos/Comments always appreciated :)


End file.
